They Walk Among Us
by Alley Arlington
Summary: A short story about one of my many strange dreams. A mutant fish is causing a zombie outbreak. Please read and review! :) One-shot.


**This is another story I wrote this summer, but never got around to posting. Based on one of my many strange dreams. Please read and review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own James.**

"This is so boring," I whine, knowing that I am being annoying. "Shut up and fish!" my cousin, Jenna snaps playfully. "Yeah, what she said," James, Jenna's boyfriend says. I roll my eyes. "Thanks for ganging up on me!" I half laugh. A huge hit jerks my line, and I instinctively yank upwards. "I've got one!" I exclaim. "It's a fighter!" "Reel it in before it gets away!" James laughs. I yank and reel until the fish is visible. "Holy crap! That fish is huge!" Jenna exclaims. "No kidding! Hahaha I almost have it!" A few reels later, and the fish is in the boat. I place is against the yardstick. It is almost two and a half feet long, and about a foot wide. "You'll be eating good tonight!" James exclaims, looking awestruck. I laugh and put it in the live-well. "Yes. Yes I will." There is one other fish inside the live-well. Although it seemed big when we caught it, it is now dwarfed by the presence of my monster fish. I have no idea what kind of fish it is. "Looks like a piranha." "What? Nah, there aren't any piranhas around here!" "It's got teeth though..." Jenna trails off. I look into the fish's mouth. Sure enough, there are a bunch of long, sharp, teeth. It leaps out of the water and snaps at my finger. Jenna pulls me back, almost causing the boat to topple. "Jenna! Bri! Watch what you're doing!" We both sit down carefully, waiting for the rocking to stop. Finally, it does. "Let's head back to the shore. The weather is starting to look nasty." We all agree, then start to reel in and pack up. "Thank God we came in when we did!" James says, looking into the rear view mirror. Lightning cracks across the sky, followed by deep rumbles of thunder. James drives me home. "Do you want your fish?" he asks me. "Sure, why not." I reply. He hands me the live-well. "Just take them all. Jenna and I don't especially like fish," he tells me. I take the live-well and head into the house. "Thanks for driving me home," I yell over my shoulder. "No problem!" I close and lock my doors, then start getting things ready for dinner. I don't have any food in my freezer, so I decide to fry up the fish. The meat is delicious, but it tastes strange, unlike any fish I've ever tasted before. Once I am done, I dry and wash the dishes, then head out to the living room to watch the news. "There was a nuclear power plant meltdown near the St. Joe River in Michigan. All fish there have been deemed unsafe to eat. Please do not fish, swim, or do anything in or near this river until further notice. Thank you." The next news story comes on, but I am not interested. What if that strange fish was a mutant brought on by the contamination? My stomach feels queasy, and I have to resist the urge to puke. Hopefully I'm not going to get sick. Disgusted, I turn off the TV and head to bed. When I wake up the next morning, I feel weird. I feel strangely empty, as if half of me is missing. "It was probably a dream," I tell myself. Suddenly, the phone rings. "Just seeing if you were still alive. Did you eat the fish?" Jenna asks me, sounding concerned. "Yeah, but I feel fine." I don't mention the strange missing feeling. "That's good. Do you want to go fishing again?" "Nah. It's supposed to rain later today. How about going to see a movie?" You can bring James along if you want to." "Sounds like a plan. Hey, I heard the new Paranormal Activity movie just hit theaters. Wanna go see it at one?" "Sure. See ya at one," I reply, then hang up. The feeling is growing stronger, but I shake it off and make breakfast. Once my omelet is finished, I head out to the living room and turn on the Investigation Discovery channel. Words flash across the screen. Apparently, some people are claiming that the zombie apocalypse is upon us. I am about to change the channel when something a witness says stops me. "At first, I didn't think anything was wrong. I felt like something was missing, but that was it. There were no other symptoms. I ignored the feeling, but it kept getting stronger and stronger. When it became almost unbearable, I looked up and she was there." "Wait a second, who's she?" the reporter prompts. "It was me, but it wasn't me. She looked...evil... I guess. It seemed like all of my bad qualities were manifested in this creature." "So basically, all of your bad qualities were ripped out of you and placed in this creature?" "Yes. She lurched towards me, very unsteadily, and she kept mumbling something, but I couldn't understand her until she got closer. She kept mumbling "brains, brains, need brains" over and over again. I turned and ran." "Do you know where this abomination went?" "No. As far as I know, it is still out there, searching for its next victim." "Do you know what might have caused this?" "The only thing I can think of is fish. I went to the market, and there was a vendor in the middle of the market giving out free samples of fish. It was different, but tasty, so I decided to buy a whole fish. It was an excellent price, for such a big fish. The only weird thing was that it had very long, sharp, teeth." "Thank you. Next up, crop circles in Ohio? Stay tuned." I shut the TV off in terror. That can't be what's happening to me! How could I be contaminated?! It's got to be a lie! I glance at the clock. It is already 12:00. The theater is about a half hour away from my house, so I decide to start getting ready. I make it to the theater right on time. Jenna and James are waiting In the lobby. The missing feeling is getting stronger, and I glance around to make sure that the other Bri isn't around. Thankfully, I don't see her. "What's the matter? You seem on edge," Jenna says. "I was watching ID. A story unnerved me, that's all," I explain, hating my voice for shaking. James looks unconvinced, but he lets the matter drop. "Come on. It's almost time for the movie to start," James commands. We all buy our tickets and get in line. The unnerving feeling gets even stronger, and I glance around the lobby again. My eyes settle on a woman with long brown hair. She turns, and I see my face reflected back at me. Well, almost. It is the mirror image, the polar opposite, of my face. I gasp. Jenna looks over, then gasps as well. "Oh. My. God," she exclaims. I look at her. "She looks just like you! Why do you look so startled? Oh look! She's coming this way!" I stand, rooted in place. I look at her face. Her lips are moving, but I can't hear anything. When she is about three feet away, we can finally hear what she is saying. "Brains, brains, need brains," she mumbles. All of the color drains from Jenna's face. "I thought they were lying! This can't be happening!" Jenna exclaims. "Wait, did you see the ID episode too? About the zombie apocalypse?" "Yes! We need to get out of here, before someone gets hurt!" We all run towards the door, dodging people. A few people give us dirty looks, but we ignore them. Zombie Me follows slowly behind, shuffling and wobbling. "Brains. Brains. BRAINS!" her voice is getting stronger. She is starting to move faster, more steadily. Jenna, James and I continue running, finally making it to the car. "We will all take the same car. It's not safe for us to be alone right now," James pants. We all clamber in Jenna's car, because it has the most gas and the best mileage. "What about your car?" Jenna worries. "It's fine. It's locked and my keys are... Oh my God, I dropped my keys somewhere!" "Don't worry about it. That's the least of our worries right now!" I silently agree. "How are we going to get rid of it? We can't just let it roam around, turning other people into zombies!" I exclaim. "Bri's right," James agrees. "This has to be dealt with quickly." "What are you planning on doing?" Jenna asks indignantly. "We have to find a way to kill it. Any suggestions?" Suddenly, the car jolts, as of someone, or something, slammed into the side. A mangled hand slams against the windshield. "I have one: drive!" I scream, starting to panic. The sensation is almost forceful enough to make me pass out. James turns the car on and presses the pedal to the floor. We jolt backwards, then stop as he realizes his mistake. We shoot forward, only to hear a loud thud. James managed to run the zombie over! I laugh before a crippling pain shoots through my leg. I look down, only to find a bone sticking out of my leg. Bile rises in my throat, and I gag. Jenna screams. "What happened?" she gags. The smell of iron is filling the car. "I think...since she is part of me...that whatever you do to her is reflected back to me," I groan. James hands me his sweatshirt to use as a makeshift tourniquet. It helps some, but soon the fabric is soaked with my blood. "I'm sorry James. I'll pay for the dry cleaning," I sputter weakly. "Jeez, Bri, you don't look so good. You're looking awfully pale," Jenna says. "Hmm, let's see... I have a broken leg, a bone coming through my skin, and I'm a half zombie. Of course I'm pale!" I gripe at her. She recoils as if I slapped her. "I'm sorry Jenna. I didn't mean it. I'm in a lot of pain, and I can't exactly think straight. Can you forgive me?" "Of course. I understand completely. We have to get you to a hospital as soon as possible!" James alters his course so that we are heading to Memorial Hospital. When we arrive, he scoops me up in his arms and carries me into the hospital. I shoot Jenna a look begging for her not to get jealous. She catches it. "It's fine. There's nothing you could do. I'm not strong enough to carry you, and you can't walk. It was the only way." I sigh, thankful that she understood. A doctor has me placed on a gurney and wheeled into surgery. When I wake up, my entire shin is in a cast. Jenna and James are standing by my bed. "How ya feel?" Jenna asks me. "Better. Can I go now? I'm sure that zombie is following us." As if on cue, there are screams down the hallway. "No time to think. Out the window!" James commands. I grab the crutches that were left by my bed and hobble to the window. It is open, and thankfully, it is near a fire escape. I climb out first, since I will take the longest to get down. Jenna follows me, and James follows Jenna. After he leaves, he closes the window to throw the zombie off our scent. At last, we make it to the ground. I crutch as quickly as I can to the car. Jenna and James follow. "Time to go!" Jenna shouts. I turn and see Zombie Me heading straight towards us. How does she move so fast?! We all pile into the car, and James floors the accelerator. Soon, we are headed towards my grandma's house, since it is the closest. When we finally reach it, we get a less than warm welcome. "So, Brianne, why is your face all over the news?" my grandma demands. "Wait, what?!" "You're all over the news. Apparently you trashed a hospital..." my grandma trails off as she realizes that the thing on the news wasn't me. Suddenly, she freezes. "Gene, go grab your rifle. Hurry!" she snaps quietly. I know what is behind me before I actually turn. "How is that thing traveling so fast?!" I ask angrily. Jenna shrugs, and my grandpa returns with his rifle. He aims it, then pulls the trigger before we can tell him to stop. My grandpa is a good shot, having been in the war and all. He hit the thing straight in the heart, a deadly shot. It jerks back, as do I. "What the hell?!" my grandma exclaims. I fall backwards, blood spurting from the small, dark hole in my chest. "Whatever you do to that zombie is reflected back on Brianne. They are linked to each other. If one dies, so does the other!" Jenna sobs. My grandma staggers backwards. My grandpa gets down on his knees and starts sobbing, something I have never seen him do. "I'm so sorry Brianne. I didn't know. I'm so sorry!" I lay back and relax. My end is near, but Jenna's, James', and everyone else I know has their entire life ahead of them, but only if they are willing to fight. This is my end, but the fight is just beginning. The zombie apocalypse has begun.

**Thoughts? Please review and check out my other stories! :)**


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